Monthly Archives: January 2013

Brief background: A few days ago, Mick, an illustrator from Australia, was kind enough to leave a comment on my bio page, in which he mentioned the somewhat bewildering array of information out there regarding self-publishing and whether to do it all yourself, or outsource it all–or which road between the two options to follow. Here’s my take:

The first step you need to take is back.

If you’re thinking of self-pubbing, then step back. Step away from your project, from the minutiae of research on the how to-s and the what to-s and all that important stuff.

Survey the territory–starting with YOU!

Once you’ve got some distance, look around, at your circumstances, your budget and your resources. As importantly, look at who you are and how you like to work. Are you someone who likes control? Or do you prefer someone else to deal with the details and nitty-gritty stuff, so you just see, and approve or seek changes, at key steps in the project? This will give you some answers about which route to take. Continue reading →

While I have wholeheartedly embraced the fun and the challenges of the digital publishing experience, as a longtime book lover, I have to admit that there’s nothing quite like seeing a book I’ve worked on, long and hard, in print for the first time. So when I arrived home a few days ago to find my print proof for Konstantin’s Gifts waiting for me, you can only imagine my excitement.

But that will come later. For now, I just want to bask in the sight of this book that I have spent so much time crafting and creating–from story to character to context–sitting on my table, or resting in my hand as I flip through pages covered in words that I wrote. The experience has a magic all its own.

The gorgeous walled city of Carcasonne: part of our 10 year anniversary trip through France, Spain and Morocco this past summer

Happy New Year, everyone! May you all have a wonderful and auspicious 2013.

It’s been a while since I’ve done my milestones column–I don’t know if I actually wrote one in 2012 at all!

And, while I don’t really believe in New Year’s resolutions (I figure, I don’t need to wait till the New Year to make changes–for me that’s just procrastination. If I want to change, then that’s the best time to make the change), I do think the clicking over of one calendar year to the next is a good point at which to look back and see what all has happened in the past year. Continue reading →

Search The Blog

Publishers

I’ve tried a couple of different apps whose purpose of existence is to alert users to the existence of other apps that are temporarily discounted or free. So far, the standout for me is Apps Gone Free. I’m not a … Continue reading →

A while back, I did a side-by-side review of the in-app dictation software in the more recent iOS versions and the free Dragon dictation app. The in-app software won (sad though I am to admit it, as I do love … Continue reading →

Looking back through my old posts, I was simultaneously astonished and chagrined that I had not yet written anything about Goodreader. It was one of my early purchases on the iPad and has been one of my top, go-to apps … Continue reading →

I’m a productivity junkie. Modern life, with all its devices, information and demands means that if you’ve got your fingers in more than one pie (and most of us do) we can’t afford to waste a moment–and that if we’re … Continue reading →